Cellular telephones have become popular portable communication devices such that a user may easily engage in verbal conversations with one or more other users over a communication network through the exchange of real-time audio conversational content. Electronic media players have also become popular personal entertainment devices due to their highly portable nature and interconnectivity with existing computer networks, for example the Internet. The accessibility and simplicity in downloading music and other electronic media continues to fuel the popularity of these devices as is exemplified by Apple Computer, Inc.'s highly successful iPod™ portable media player. Other manufacturers have competing media players offering various functionalities and file playing compatibilities in an effort to differentiate their products in the marketplace.
As discussed in Apple Computer, Inc., patent application, US 2004/0224638 A1, Ser. No. 10/423,490 to Fadell, et al., which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety; an increasing number of consumer products are incorporating circuitry to play music and other electronic media. At the present time, cellular telephones and portable media players have become integrated into a common portable electronic that supports both telephony and media file playing functionality.
In the relevant art, the integrated electronic device may perform both functions but not at the same time; a user may talk on the phone, or listen to music, but generally cannot do both simultaneously for it would be disconcerting for one user to be listening to music while conversing on the phone with another user who was not listening to music.
Even more disconcerting would be if two users were each listening to different pieces of music while they were simultaneously holding a telephony conversation between them. As such, a highly desirable feature would provide a plurality of users who are engaged in a real-time voice communication telephony conversation to be able to simultaneously listen to the same piece of music with substantial synchronization of play. Furthermore it would be highly desirable to provide the plurality of users who are engaged in the real-time voice communication telephony conversation, the electronically moderated ability to jointly select the musical media content that they simultaneously listen to during the voice conversation. This would provide for a shared music-selection and music-listening experience among the participants of the person-to-person remote voice communication conversation.
Unless otherwise indicated herein, the approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.